125 years ago
October 6, 1893
The farmer is a little better off than most anyone else these days. The day laborer, whether skilled or unskilled, is out of employment; the professional man is idle; the business man flounders hopelessly in a sea of financial difficulties. In the meantime, the farmer is not making assignments or being closed out by his creditors. He has a crop about ready for the market, and the indications are he will get good prices this fall.
***
James Gillies had a raft towed up from the Humptulips river Tuesday containing seven hundred thousand feet. All except ten fir logs were of the best quality of spruce.
***
A young man on Mr. Lavitt’s claim on North river caught 130 salmon one day last week. Some are being caught with sharpened sticks.
100 years ago
October 4, 1918
The Kemerlins got three letters at once from Lynn and all of them are so interesting that parts must be taken from all.
In a letter from July 14 he tells:
“As soon as I get to a place where I can, I will have my picture taken with my gas mask and helmet on.
“I have several German souvenirs, if I can I will send them home. They are ones I took myself when we ‘went over the top.’ ”
And on Aug. 13 he writes:
“We took the Germans by surprise, got lots of prisoners, machine guns and large guns. The Allies are driving the Germans back fast and prisoners are coming in by the thousands. In our drive we hooked a Major and his staff — some haul.”
In his letter of Aug. 14 he tells of helping to take thousands of prisoners. “I received a big roll of Videttes and other papers and it was like ‘seeing home’ again to read them and when I read about what the people at home are doing and giving, and the big push it will give us, makes Berlin look a whole lot closer, and what money goes to the Red Cross could not be spent better, for when a man lies wounded on the battle field he always thinks ‘the Red Cross will help me’ and it is your money that will let them do it.”
75 years ago
October 7, 1943
Pfc. Henry C. Henrickson, better known here as “Red” Henrickson, has been awarded the Army’s good conduct medal, according to a press release from the public relation’s office at Camp Roberts, California, where he has been stationed for many months as a military policeman.
He was formerly a deputy sheriff here, The good conduct award is given those soldiers who have demonstrated fidelity through faithful and exact performances of duty, efficiency through capacity to produce desired results and whose behavior has been such as to warrant emulation.
***
The War Department today urged families and friends of soldiers to exercise extreme caution in discussing the military status of an individual soldier lest by consolidation of information on individuals, Axis agents may determine plans of a regiment, a division or even an entire army.
Soldiers have been taught the prime necessity for military security. For them and through them it is hoped that relatives and friends of these soldiers back home will take their cue and provide civilian security for military matters.
The War Department has asked and again asks the public to follow three simple rules:
If you HEAR it from someone — don’t repeat it.
If you SEE it yourself — don’t repeat it.
If you READ it in newspapers or hear it on the radio, then it’s public property — and you may talk about it. Of course you mustn’t repeat information you read in personal letters.
50 years ago
October 3, 1968
Grays Harbor businessman, Bob Bush, who at the age of 18, received the coveted Congressional Medal on Honor, will attend the C.M.H. Society convention scheduled for October 10-13 in Seattle.
When Bush was awarded the decoration in 1945, he was the youngest U.S. Navy enlisted man to receive the medal — presented to him for conspicuous gallantry while serving with the First Marine Division as a Navy Corpsman on the island of Okinawa.
With Victor Druzianich, Bush is the co-founder of the Bayview Building Materials Company, which has seven stores in the greater harbor area. The organization, started 20 years ago, has blossomed into one of the largest “do-it-yourself” centers on the west coast and pays particular attention to the weekend shopper and the housewife who likes to browse in such an establishment.
25 years ago
October 7, 1993
Some 400 to 500 well wishers, including political dignitaries, future mill workers and local Harbor backers were on hand last Saturday morning to herald the reopening of the Grays Harbor Paper Mill, a reality that Hoquiamite Bill Quigg and others finally brought to life with an official ribbon cutting Saturday in front of the mill.
Quigg and others have been working day and night since last November in an effort to put the idle former ITT-Rayonier Mill back in operation and it finally became a reality a short time ago when negotiations with ITT were declared to have been successful, and a working arrangement with both Weyerhaeuser and Pope and Talbot of Halsey, Oregon had been worked out with the Halsey mill supplying the pulp and Weyco helping market the finished paper product.
10 years ago
October 2, 2008
A yearly tradition come late summer in Montesano is the Lions Club Turtle Trek, which offers locals the opportunity to win great prizes and give back to the community in the process.
Around 1,100 rubber duckie-like turtles were dumped into the Wynooche River just north of the U.S. Highway 12 bridge at the foot of Clemons hill at 1:34 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 27.
The turtles then floated down the river at their own pace, and 30 minutes later it was all hands on deck to rein in the turtles as they crossed the finish line in bunches.
“We appreciate the support and donations from the community,” Organizer Steve Poler said. “The more (the Lions) raise, the more we can support the community.”
***
Montesano golf edges Chehalis by one.
As the scorecards slowly filtered into the clubhouse, things could not have been tighter as Montesano and W.F. West (Chehalis) were within just a few strokes of one another.
Then as the final varsity group turned in their cards, it was Nathan Shea’s 42 that sealed a 214-215 nonleague boys golf victory for the unbeaten Bulldogs on Thursday, Sept. 25 at Elma’s Oaksridge Golf Course.
“It was really a pretty exciting match,” Montesano head coach Lloyd Aldrich said. “We were down two strokes until Nathan’s 42 in the No. 6 spot won it for us.”
Bulldog 214: Shawn Dierick, 38; Chad Porter, 41; James McCulloch, 47; Matthew Shea, 48; Chris Logan, 46; Nathan Shea, 42.
Compiled from the archives of The Vidette by Karen Barkstrom. She can be reached at kbarkstrom@thedailyworld.com or 360-537-3925.
